May 2011

From The Kitchen Table

~ The Desk of Lynne Schaefer~

May 2011

“Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from Him.”  Psalm 62:5

It’s a Madhouse Sometimes...

Sometimes and sometimes can mean “quite often” in our case, things go on in our house that would freak other people out.

Our missionary friend Steve, who also has a vast knowledge in vet nary skills, neutered our 2 male cats on our kitchen table. Of course, I could not watch, having the kitchen as a surgery was a bit strange, but he did the job and did it well. Out here, it’s is great to have such handy people close by.

This past month we slaughtered an ox of ours which has supplied us with meat for quite a while. It is a hard thing to do, but it has to be done in order to feed our family and the numerous visitors that we get. We now have biltong (beef jerky) hanging in the pantry to dry too. One year Joel even had some drying above his bed – under his mosquito net!

We often have chickens waltzing into the house, and even a calf or two have been seen clip clopping down our passage. A friend was standing talking to me one day and asked, “Um, is there supposed to be a calf walking down your passage?” The dogs who are supposed to be outside are not as obedient as the kids and are often found in the house in totally forbidden places! We have a cat that is constantly opening the fridge, and a sheep who wears a red studded dog collar around her neck.

Sometimes, things happen and I think to myself, “Thank goodness there was no one around to see that”. It is not impossible to exit the kitchen door, skid on chicken poop, fall and sprain an ankle! Of course there is no GP to pop down to get it checked out at, the hospital is a very, very last resort, so its bandage it up and pray that it heals – FAST!

Of course, the worst always seems to happen when Grant is away, and many times I am left scratching my head wondering what to do or how to solve it without him.

But, God supplies our needs, often in very strange ways. He looks after us and provides for us way beyond our expectations. He gives us joy in the lonely times, bringing many visitors who provided good fellowship and laughter. At the end of the day, it’s a blessing to be able to lie down to sleep at night and say, “in spite of it all, God is good!!”

 

Other News

We are slogging away at getting the language into our heads. It is a slow, but steady process.

Grant did a trip on his motorbike to Lusaka to submit our “entry” permit. We have been here enough years to apply for one instead of a work permit. We are praying it will be approved. It will save us having to apply for a work permit every 2 years.

Grant was invited to traditional ceremony by one of the chiefs. Although a real cultural shock, it was a great learning experience for him, enabling him to understand the culture better. He was given the best seat, right next to the chief!

Praise God For:

· Grant’s safe trip to Lusaka and back on his motorbike

· For his provision

· For his protection from creepy crawlies ( a friend was recently bitten by a snake and had to be air-evacuated out of Zambia)

Please Pray:

· That our entry permit will be approved

· As we try to learn Bemba

· For Grant’s students

Grant is blogging his daily life as a missionary – A Missionary Diary at the web address: grantschaefer.blogspot.com.

Thanks for your encouragement, your prayers and support of our ministry here.

 

God bless.

 

Lynne Schaefer and Family

Grant, Joel, Hope, Charley, Olivia, Luke

PO Box, 420032, Mbala, Zambia